A FORMER member of the armed forces who served in the Falklands and Gulf War has spoken of his honour of being on one of the boats which took part in this year's Association of Dunkirk Little Ships Annual Veterans Cruise along the Thames.

At the commemoration, Terry Beddoes, 62, from Ashurst, Skelmersdale was on the pleasure yacht RIIS 1, which rescued upwards of 200 troops at Dunkirk.

It was also the ‘little ship’ that inspired Christopher Nolan to make this year's film, Dunkirk.

Terry said: “I was privileged to sail down the River Thames from Hampton Court to Richmond and return on the vessel. RIIS 1 appears in the film Dunkirk and can be recognised as her masthead radar had to be covered with sacking.”

During the event the group stayed at Teddington Lock and a memorial service was held to commemorate the role of the Little Ships in Operation Dynamo.

The Dunkirk operation took place from May 26 to June 4, 1940 and saw 338,000 British and French troops evacuated back to England.

Terry, who served for 23 years in the navy before retiring from the services in 1995, is now the treasurer of the Skelmersdale Royal Navy Association.

During the Falklands conflict he was a leading cook on HMS Herald which carried the wounded from the islands to Montevideo, Uruguay.

He was also a chief caterer on HMS Manchester during the First Gulf War.

Following his Dunkirk memorial cruise honour Terry is now busy planning to return to the Falkland Islands with fellow veterans for a two-week visit in January.